Phil Roe's scheduling conflict: 'I'm going to my wedding Saturday'

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds.

(CNN)The buzz on Capitol Hill Wednesday afternoon about a possible health care vote had lawmakers wondering if they would be able to leave town on Thursday for recess.

Rep. Phil Roe is perhaps more jittery than anyone else: he is getting married on Saturday.

"I've been a little anxious about that," Roe, 71, told CNN in the Speaker's lobby, adding with a grin that there was no way he would miss his own wedding. "If the vote's on Friday, I'll vote on Friday and I'll drive home or get home some way. I'll figure out how to get to Tennessee."

The Tennessee Republican will marry his fiancé, Clarinda, at a small, daytime ceremony attended by only the couple's children and grandchildren. A dinner with family will follow Saturday evening, and on Friday night, there is a dinner scheduled with friends.

The couple met at a grief group. Roe lost his previous wife over two years ago, and Clarinda had also recently lost her previous husband. After more than a year and a half of attending the counseling sessions, Roe said he asked Clarinda whether she would like to have lunch after church one Sunday. She agreed.

Read More

"So we drove up and had lunch -- actually drove over North Carolina because people know both of us at home and we didn't want to get caught," Roe said. "So we drove to another state where nobody knew us and just one thing led to another and I feel very, very blessed to have met this wonderful person."